The announcement was made by Senior Minister of State for National Development, Mr. Shen Ying, at the 35th anniversary conference of the Singapore Policy Institute.

Shen Ying pointed out that HDB had earlier announced an increase in the number of flats available under the scheme from 800 in 2021 to 1,800 this year. She announced that HDB has not only achieved its target, but will provide close to 2,000 units by the end of this year.

Shen Ying said that due to the doubling of supply, the application rate for the Child Care Short Term Housing Scheme has dropped significantly from more than 20 times in 2021 to about three times at present.

Shen Ying also said the authorities are aware that there is a continuing public demand for such units, but supply remains limited and are therefore looking at ways to further maximize the use of available units, such as making it mandatory for applicants to share larger units. This would allow more homebuyers waiting for HDB flats to be completed to temporarily rent from HDB at subsidized rates.